The Australia US Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) covers a number
of issues and this paper deals with Chapter 17 on Intellectual
Property Rights (IPRs). It first examines AUSFTA’s attempts
to entrench or enhance Australia’s already strong IPRs. The
general economic arguments are examined as well as the Australian
and US interests in stronger IPRs. Stronger IPRs protect rights
holders from competition and so sit awkwardly with the aims of free
trade. Some specific concerns have been expressed such as
AUSFTA’s implications when producers use copyright protection
measures to practice price discrimination around the world and
against the interests of Australian consumers. (26 pages)

Less tax or
more social spending: 20 years of opinion
polling [HTML][PDF 390KB]
Research Paper No.13 2003–04
Richard Grant, Politics and Public Administration Section
24 May 2004

The debate over whether the Australian public wants tax cuts or
more spending on social services has been highlighted in the media
recently in the wake of new surveys on the tax-spend trade-off and
the tax cuts in the Budget. This Research Paper looks at the
results of major surveys on the issue of less tax or more social
spending over the past 20 years. It considers the factors that
underpin support for each option and examines the date on
Australians’ willingness to pay for specific items of public
expenditure through higher tax. The paper concludes with an
assessment of survey results in light of the political and public
policy challenges facing Australia. (35 pages)
(See also: Research Note
No 57 2003-04)

This paper provides a concordance of postcodes to Commonwealth
electoral divisions, based on the results ofthe 2001 Census. It is
an update of Research Paper no. 12, 2000–01, and reflects
changes to electoral boundaries brought about by recent electoral
redistributions. The concordance will enable senators and members
to convert information published by postcode by organisations such
as Centrelink or the Australian Taxation Office into electoral
division totals. (30 pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

A new paradigm
of international migration: implications for migration policy and
planning in Australia [HTML][PDF 2,347KB]
Research Paper No.10 2003–04
Professor Graeme Hugo, Consultant, Social Policy Section
8 March 2004

This paper argues that the global drivers of international
migration have been transformed in the last decade and that this
has greatly changed the context in which migration to and from
Australia occurs and in which immigration policy is developed. The
globalisation of labour markets, the development of an immigration
industry, the proliferation of social networks, the information and
transport revolutions, expansion of trade and economic change have
all lead to international migration being within the calculus of
choice of an increasing proportion of the world’s
inhabitants. As a result, there has been a massive increase in
global population movement and an increase in the complexity of the
types of movement—permanent and temporary, legal and
undocumented, forced and voluntary, work and non-work related, etc.
In Australia much thinking about international migration remains
anchored in a paradigm of movement that applied in the four decades
following the Second World War, which focused almost entirely on
permanent settlement. The contemporary situation is that the
international migration impinging on Australia is now more complex
especially with temporary residence becoming more important and
more Australians than ever before migrating to live and work for
extended periods in other countries. It is argued that much of the
thinking and research on immigration in Australia neglects the new
reality of international movements. International migration has
been, and remains a crucial component of Australia’s
economic, social and cultural development. It is important that
Australia’s international migration research and thinking
take full cognizance of these important changes. (83 pages)
(See also: Research Notes Nos
54-56 2003-04) BACK to IndexWhat's New

Labour hire is an alternative form of employment to the direct
employer-employee relationship. Labour hire involves relationships
between a principal, an employment agency and the person performing
the tasks. While labour hire arrangements have been a feature of
the Australian labour market for decades, the relatively recent
data now being compiled on this sector suggests it is a growth
industry, with many large employers increasing their use of labour
hire arrangements in preference to direct employment. This paper
reviews the factors behind the growth of labour hire and provides
updates on responses to the issue within the courts, by governments
and by labour unions. (27 pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

This paper examines the rationale for Commonwealth government
involvement in infrastructure provision, how it influences the
provision of infrastructure, and trends in that influence. In
particular, it seeks to delineate the role that the Commonwealth
plays as distinct from that of State governments. (33 pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

This paper reviews developments in Commonwealth road funding in
the 1990s and examines associated majorissues. The paper also
contains the most recent data. (33 pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

The Australian
Senate [HTML][PDF 372KB]
Research Paper No.6 2003–04
Scott Bennett, Politics and Public Administration Group
10 February 2004

The Senate is one of the most-analysed parts of the Australian
political system. In 2003 Prime Minister Howard's proposals about
the deadlocks procedure began another round of debate about its
place in our Parliament. Debates about the Senate have therefore
been always with us and will not end in the foreseeable future.
This paper is designed to provide a concise background document to
these debates, enabling Members of Parliament to understand the
place of Australia's national upper house in the Australian
political system. (29 pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

The Australian and
American Senates: A Comparison [HTML][PDF 237KB]
Research Paper No.5 2003–04
Stanley Bach, Consultant, Politics and Public Administration
Group
10 February 2004

For more than 30 years Dr Stan Bach worked with, and provided
advice to, Senators and Representatives on the operations of the US
Congress. From 1988 to 2002 he held the office of Senior Specialist
in the Legislative Process for the Congressional Research Service
of the Library of Congress.In 2002 Dr Bach was awarded a Fulbright
Senior Scholar Award to study bicameralism in Australia. In 2003 he
published Platypus and Parliament, a well-received study on the
Australian Senate. This paper is Dr Bach's analysis of the major
differences between the Australian and US upper houses. (24
pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

Corporate Citizenship and the Role of
Government: the Public Policy Case [HTML][PDF 423KB]
Research Paper No.4 2003–04
Dr Gianni Zappalà, Politics and Public Administration
Group
1 December 2003

Corporate citizenship means understanding and managing a
company's influence on society and all its stakeholders. Good
corporate citizenship integrates social, ethical, environmental,
economic and philanthropic values in the core decision-making
processes of a business. Until recently, the focus of the corporate
citizenship debate has been on the business case—on why being
good is good for business. Today, however, the focus is on the
relationship between public policy and corporate citizenship, and
the increasing pressure on governments to regulate corporate social
behaviour. This Research Paper, which has an accompanying Research
Note summarising the main arguments, explores the various potential
policy options. It argues that, while there is a role for public
policy in the area of corporate citizenship, that role is not
necessarily a regulatory one. (32 pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

We
are Australian–The Constitution and Deportation of
Australian-born Children [HTML][PDF 550KB]
Research Paper No. 3 2003–04
Peter Prince, Law and Bills Digest Group
24 November 2003

Does birth in Australia protect a child against deportation? Is
a child born in this country an 'Australian national' even if
legislation says he or she is not a 'citizen'? Can children be
denied citizenship because their parents are 'illegal' immigrants
or temporary visa holders? The High Court must decide these
questions in a forthcoming case in which a five year old girl born
in Sydney—whose Sikh refugee parents face expulsion from
Australia—will challenge 1986 laws restricting the automatic
right to citzenship at birth. (56 pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

Four-Year Terms for the House of
Representatives? (September 2003) [HTML] [PDF 601KB]
Research Paper No. 2 2003–04
Scott Bennett, Politics and Public Administration Group
8 September 2003

During 2000–01 the DPL published 'Four-year terms for the
House of Representatives?', a paper that was well-received by
readers inside and outside the Parliament. This paper is now being
re-issued with changes made as a consequence of events that have
occurred since publication. (34 pages) BACK to IndexWhat's New

This paper explains how the Commonwealth determines the
level and distribution of financial assistance it provides to local
government and examines some key issues in the provision of
assistance. (26 pages)